Chris Forsberg of ESPN Boston on Perry Jones: “It’s a combination of size and athleticism that intrigued Boston about the 23-year-old forward, enough so that the team was willing to acquire his guaranteed deal from the Oklahoma City Thunder and bring him to training camp despite now carrying 17 guaranteed contracts — two more than the regular-season limit. Jones faces a climb to make Boston’s roster. Despite flashes of potential, he’s had a rather unremarkable three-year NBA career while averaging 3.4 points and 1.8 rebounds over 11.7 minutes per game. Injuries and a lack of opportunity have contributed to appearing in only 143 games and playing only an average of 558 minutes per season.”

Kevin Pelton of ESPN Insider projecting Cam Payne’s rookie year: “We didn’t get a chance to see Payne this summer because of a fractured finger he suffered on his non-shooting hand during pre-draft workouts. The injury shouldn’t hold Payne back much, but with Russell Westbrook and D.J. Augustin ahead of him on the depth chart, he’s unlikely to see regular minutes as a rookie.” Keep Reading…

The Thunder announced they have signed Huestis, a first-round draft pick in 2014, to a four-year, rookie-scale contract.

“We are excited to add Josh to our roster as he allows us to continue to increase our depth through his athleticism and versatility,” Thunder general manager Sam Presti said. “Josh knows our culture and our organization as a result of his time with the Blue, and we look forward to his continued development with the Thunder.” Keep Reading…

Brad Doolittle of ESPN Insider on most and least improved teams: “Getting Pierce to sign filled the Clippers’ biggest hole, but not far behind on the to-do list was upgrading a woeful bench. The talent level in that regard has been unquestionably improved, with Prigioni, Stephenson, Smith and Aldrich taking over for a quartet that collectively would have been forecast to produce minus-2.2 WARP. Doc Rivers has to figure out how the talent will fit, and that’s a concern. The starting lineup is off-the-charts good, but how will a bench group that includes, Stephenson, Smith and either (or both) of Austin Rivers and Crawford share the ball? Either way, it’s a much better problem for the Clippers’ boss to tackle than the one he faced before the endearingly fickle nature of DeAndre Jordan kept him in an L.A. uniform.”

Marc Stein of ESPN.com says OKC will make the biggest jump in the West:” Oklahoma City, as long as you’re prepared to assume a mostly healthy season for Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook. Billy Donovan’s move to the NBA, like Fred Hoiberg’s in Chicago, will be a source of season-long curiosity. The talent, though, is too good when available ‎for the Thunder not to make their traditional run at 55-ish wins, no matter how the new coach fares.” Keep Reading…

Jenni Carlson on the orange unis: “Certainly feels that way around here now, but because we were a college-only-sports state for so long and so passionately, it took our brains a bit to re-calibrate. That’s why the Thunder didn’t roll out an orange jersey right away. That’s why it waited seven years. Every fan doesn’t love the orange alternate uniforms. That much is clear. But Bedlam allegiances are no longer all things to all people all the time. Paradise lost? Not even close.”

The Thunder will host Turkish team Fenerbache Ulker in a preseason game on Oct. 9, it was announced on Tuesday.

The hook here is that Fenerbache was Enes Kanter’s professional team in Turkey. He joined them when he was only 14 years old, and joined the senior squad when he was 16. Kanter’s time with Fener was the big problem when he signed with Kentucky, but was ruled ineligible by the NCAA because of the money he earned while with them. Keep Reading…

Perry Jones: “That’s frustrating for anybody, especially having those good games and I was feeling good about myself and confident and then things change,” Jones said. “I had my injury and everything came back, things went back to the way they were. It was frustrating, but it has taught me a lot and it’s taught me I can play in this league.”

John Schuhmann of NBA.com has OKC ranked sixth: “The Thunder ranked in the top 10 in defensive efficiency three straight years and through the All-Star break last season. Then injuries and Enes Kanter brought them down. Kevin Durant’s health is the key to everything, and the offense will be potent health-permitting, but they just gave $70 million to a guy who they can’t play when they need stops.” Keep Reading…